to the destruction and humiliation of the state of israel. >> reporter: that's the argument embraced by netanyahu, but disputed by others in israel, with its own unacknowledged nuclear capability. >> i believe there is no existential threat to israel of any kind. israel is indestructible in my view. we have offensive capabilities, we have defensive capabilities. >> reporter: efraim halevy, who directed israel's intelligence service mossad, thinks netanyahu's hot rhetoric is off the mark. by saying that he or she is an existential threat, you're almost inviting them to try it out. >> reporter: others are less diplomatic. >> this is (no audio) to me. this is just how bibi is staying on his turf, he's sending us this idea of iran becoming you know, crazy, and deciding to throw a bomb on us. >> reporter: graphic designers ronny edry and micahl tamir,

husband and wife, started an online campaign last year to counter talk of war with a simple message: israel loves iranit began with a facebook page. and a you-tube video message to the iranian people. >> for there to be a war between us, first we must be afraid of each other, we must hate. i'm not afraid of you. i don't even know you. no iranian ever did me no harm. i never even met an iranian. just one in a paris museum: nice dude. >> reporter: the response from iranians poured in. >> people from iran took a picture of themselves and give their own writing: "israel people we don't hate you." i don't even have the words to express how moving it was. i think it's an act of desperation from people to people because the government or prime ministers here in the middle east, the communication is always so aggressive, and so hateful. captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> reporter: their effort blossomed online, in demonstrations and on tel aviv

>> brown: the president's pick buses emblazoned with their to be the next secretary of message. defense, former senator chuck hagel, defended his record today and said america must engage-- but their person-to-person campaign doesn't address what some here see as israel's not retreat-- in the world. dilemma: if iran's leaders won't good evening, i'm jeffrey brown. >> woodruff: and i'm judy agree to halt enrichment and the woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight, we united states doesn't act, excerpt tay's confirmation should israel strike on its own? hearing,s republicans sparred th the forer vietnam comb veteran about the war in iraq the reason it might: as iran expands its program and drives and more. it underground, israel's timeline to attack is much >> brown: then, we have two shorter than washington's. stories from the middle east, beginning with a dramatic late- >> we do have a very good air night rescue of syrian refugees, force but your air force has fleeing across the border to jordan. more capabilities that we are >> woodruff: and a margaret warner report about the threat a nuclear-armed iran poses to not possessing, take for b2 israel. bomber. >> if they accumulate enough uranium which is close to we have only fighters bombs. >> reporter: general yadlin weapons grade, enough uranium should know, he flew a fighter- bomber in the daring, 1981 which enables them to detonate mission to destroy saddam hussein's nuclear reactor in iraq, a strike washington tried one nuclear device: to me is to dissuade. clearly a redline. >> brown: former vice presint >> you know the americans can al gore joins us to talk about wait until they really see the his new book as well as money, politics and the future of iranians really breaking it out. democracy. for the israelis it will be too late. >> reporter: yet many in israel's military and intelligence establishment, even >> the congress is virtually

yadlin, are cautioning netanyahu incapable of passing any reforms not to rush ahead of the u.s. unless they first get permission this time, at least not yet. from the powerful special >> the vast majority of the interests. >> woodruff: do americans trust military and intelligence people the federal government? andrew kohut says a new pew poll shows the majority do not. >> brown: and ray suarez gets do not believe that a military the latest on the chinese hackers who allegedly mounted a strike today will be effective four-month cyber-attack against enough. look at the way the iranians have scattered their nuclear the "new york times." program. let's assume that israel is that's all ahead on tonight's "newshour." capable of identifying the >> major funding fothe pb weakest points in the irian newshour has been povided by: nuclear program: they act against the iranian capabilities; they don't change the iranian motivations. >> reporter: halevy still thinks iran can be persuaded to freeze its enrichment by sanctions, ♪ ♪ covert sabotage and the threat of force. >> they are not demonic and they are not messianic. they are very, very cool calculators when it comes to their direct interests. when you have the shot gun right moving our economy for 160 next to your temples sometimes years. clarity emerges. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> reporter: what is the shotgun to iran's temple right now? >> the shotgun tira's temple now is if they don't make a deal

there is a serious possibility >> and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic that the united states and or performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. israel would start military activities which would be >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and designed to neutralize iran's capabilities. foundations. >> reporter: but this very and... public talk of military action alarms many israelis. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for we met ziv tal on ben yehuda public broadcasting. street in jerusalem. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. >> ( translated ): i am not thank you. pleased with the way netanyahu is dealing with this-- putting everything out front instead of behind closed door and solving it in theway we used to solve it in a more quiet way. >> reporter: and facebook campaigner edry bemoans the >> woodruff: former u.s. senator state of mind that makes many israelis receptive to chuck hagel faced a hostile netanyahu's arguments. reception today from half of the >> in israel, we are addicted to committee that must sign off fear and we are addicted to new enemies. before he can become secretary of defense. his senate confirmation hearing we see the arabs, the iranians, centered heavily on criticism the world out there. from his one-time republican colleagues. everybody want to kill us. >> reporter: that sentiment is not surprising, says halevy, the atmosphere was friendly enough at the outset as chuck given israelis common history, hagel began his big day before but now it's time for the nation the armed services committee. to feel and act more confident. he quickly sought to allay >> this syndrome of were not yet

concerns on both sides about h safe were not yet safe were ot positions on everything from iran to israel to nuclear yet safe we're not yet safe. weapons. if we are a strong force in the middle east, i think the time has come for us to talk like a >> no one individual vote, no force and to operate like a one individual quote, no one force and to think like a force. individual statement defines me, >> reporter: if any country uses force against iran's sites, my beliefs, or my record. israel expects to bear the brunt my overall world view has never of retaliation. so it's getting prepared. expanding its defensive assets, changed: that america has and like anti-missile batteries against short and medium range must maintain the strongest attack. military in the world. here, deep underground, is >> i believe, and always have, that america must engage, not retreat, in the world, but engage in the world. another line of defense. what was originally built as a parking garage is now a four- my record is consistent on these story underground hospital points. bunker. in case of attack on tel aviv, conventional or unconventional, >> woodruff: but as a nebraska this bed would be one of senator, in 2007, hagel angered hundreds wheeled down here, fellow republicans when he along with patients and a couple opposed the surge of u.s. troops into iraq. today, his former close friend, of thousand staff. dr. gabriel barbash is director arizona senator john mccain made of the sourasky medical center and its new underground operation. clear, they haven't forgotten. >> now the facility can operate >> were you correct or incorrect

when you said that the surge on its own after it's been would be the most dangerous sealed. >> reporter: you mean entirely foreign policy blunder in this on its own? country since vietnam? were you correct or incorrect, >> without communication with the outside world for seven days. s or no? >> my reference to the surge being the most dangerous. >> reporter: barbash and his staff conduct drills in the >> are you going to answer the facilities pre-fitted for question, senator hagel? the question is were you right dialysis, surgery, trauma, all cleaned by a massive air filtration system. >> the company that manufactures or wrong? that's a pretty straightforward question. i would like an answer on these filters has been whether you were right or wrong, then you're free to elaborate. established operated and run by >> well, i'm not going to give christian germans who came into you a yes or no answer on a lot of things. israel to pay for what was done >> well let the record show that you refused to answer the by germany 60 years ago. question. now please go ahead. >> well, if you'd like me to explain why ... >> reporter: do you think you'll have to use this? >> i'd actuallyike an answer, yes or no? >> well, i'm not going to give you a yes or no. >> yes. we have two iranian i think it's far more subsidiaries-- one in the north of israel, one in the south of complicated than that, as i've israel. already said. my answer is i'll defer that both are equipped with missiles judgment to history. that can reach tel aviv. as to the comment i made about >> i think history has already so i have no doubt in my mind made a judgment about the surge, that this facility is going to sir, and you're on the wrong be used. no doubt. side of it. >> reporter: as awful as and your refusal to answer whether you were right or wrong retaliation could be, in the

about it is going to have an impact on my judgment as to cafes of jerusalem we found wide whether to vote for your agreement that the prospect of a confirmation or not. >> woodruff: florida democrat nuclear iran is much worse. bill nelson came to hagel's >> that must be the last defense, asking the decorated vietnam war veteran how his solution, but if we have to do it, we have to do it. experience in that war had guided his approach to iraq. >> the debate was not whether we should or not, but it wasbout the timing. >> i saw the consequences and the suffering and the horror of war. so i did question the surge. i believe that there is unanimous understanding in israel that if the sword, so to it wasn't an aberration to me. i always ask the question, "is speak, is on our throat, we have this going to be worth the to act. sacrifice?" we will not let this sword cut the throat. because there will be sacrifice. >> reporter: the two leaders will pick up that debate when in the case of the surge in mr. netanyahu visits washington in march, as israelis ponder the iraq, we lost almost 1,200 dead americans and thousands of prospect of another tense year wounded. ahead. >> woodruff: hagel has also been excoriated over his criticism of pro-israel loying efforts, >> woodruff: margaret's next story examines the growing and mississippi republican roger divide between israelis and palestinans nearly 20 years after the oslo peace accords. wicker raised it again. >> you are here today as a and you can continue to find a you have suggested that there is link to all of our reporting an effective lobby out there,

whether you call them the jewish from israel, gaza and the west lobby, the israeli lobby or the bank on our website. israel lobby, and that they succeed in doing dumb things through intimidation, and that u.s. policy has been the wrong approach because the >> brown: now to our interview with former vice president al intimidation has worked. gore. since he conceded the 2000 presidential election, >> i've already said, i regret mr. gore's become best-known for referencing the jewish lobby. his advocacy on climate change issues work that led to both a i should he sa pro-israel nobel prize and an academy lobby. awd. i think it's the only time on lately, his business and corporate connections have also the record that i've ever said been in the news, when he sold that. on the use of intimidation, his cable channel, current tv. should have used influence, i to al-jazeera, the network owned think would have been more appropriate. by the government of qatar in the persian gulf. gore is back in print now with a i should not have said dumb or new book titled, "the future: stupid, because i understand, six drivers of global change" examining major shifts in appreciate there are different science, technology, the global economy and american democracy. views in these things. >> reporter: south carolina republican lindsey graham argued i spoke to him earlier today. that hagel's larger record on middle east policy is equally troubling. >> pelley: al gore welcome. >> thank you. >> do you believe that the sum >> brown: you wrote that someone

total of all of your votes, refusing to sign a letter to the asked you about the driving forces of the future. i wonder now that you're done. e.u. asking hezbollah to be designated a terrorist is this book a warning? organization, being one of 22 to a wake-up call, what are you vote to designate the iranian trying to tell us about the future? >> i've always been fascinated with those who try to look over revolutionary guard a terrorist the horizon and see things that organization, being one of two are coming at us. and many of the changes now on two occasions to vote against under way have arisen out of the sanctions that this body was still accelerating scientific trying to impose on iran, the and technological revolution and statements you made about palestinians and about the the hypergrowth that we have in jewish lobby, all that together. thathe image y created is the glob civilationand one of sending the worst economy in which we now live. possible signal to our enemies and friends at one of the most years ago c.p. snow wrote a critical times in world history? famous essay about the two >> no, i would not agree with cultures saying that the culture that. and science and technology on the one hand was increasingly because i have taken actions and separate from popular culture and i think that's true. made statements very clear as to and what i have done i've tried what i believe hezbollah and hamas are as a terrorist organizations. to get these communities to

repeat things in civil language so that i can unrstand them >> if you had a chance tomorrow, andhen t to cmunate them today, after lunch, to vote to say that the iranian revolutionary guard was a terrorist organization. >> you have very big issue of would you still vote no? >> the reason i voted no to technology and science and tackle very nitty-gritty issues start with... of our time. >> well i know why, you told me that. my question is would you reconsider and would you vote yes this time? now you use the expression that or would you still vote no? >> times change. democracy is being hacked. >> has been hacked. i recognize that and, yes, i >> you attribute this to an would reconsider. influence of big money. >> yes. >> well, thank you, that is encouraging. >> woodruff: as for iran and its nuclear program, and the potential for military action against it. georgia republican saxby is the process taintd? >> when you use the word "taint chambliss asked whether hagel it implies the lack still supports direct talks with legitimacy. and i don't want to imply that. the islamic republic. i think it has been degraded and >> i think the president has significantly captured. gone as far as he should go i first went to the congress, the house of representatives in publicly on that. he said clearly, in his words, the '70s and i have watched. that he has israel's back. he said his policy is not to allow the iranians to get a nuclear weapon. i've watched this and it is connected to the influence of

big money. if in fact the military option is the only one required, i it's also partly of an outgrowth think we're always on higher of a tectonic shift of the early ground in every way, days of our republic when the printing press and thepublic ternational law, domestilaw, square tt was informed by the people of the world, people of printing press has been replaced the region to be with us on by television. now americans watch television this, if we have tried and if we have gone through every five hours a day, those my age possibility to resolve this in a and older seven hours a day responsible, peaceful way, rather than going to war. >> reporter: if he's confirmed, one of hagel's first challenges could be tens of billions of making up for us. but as a result the role of dollars in automatic defense money has been greatly spending cuts, starting in early march. increased. he warned today of serious harm, unless congress acts to prevent >> brown: to what impact? the sense we can't pass legislation and affecting our those. elections as well? >> for a free country to continue thriving ere have to regular reforms because any >> when you hang that kind of uncertainty over any institution, but especially the institution charged with society, any economy that stays national security in our country, it's very dangerous. >> woodruff: by day's end, it was unclear exactly what hagel's in place you're going to see prospects are. repeated attempts to exploit the most of the senate's 55 democrats are believed to back openings for twisting policy to

him. only one republican has said the advantage of those and those publicly he will vote to confirm. who've already had wealth and power. >> brown: you can watch more highlights from chuck hagel's confirmation hearings on our website. it's a common theme throughout and still to come on the human history and we've been "newshour": syrian refugees escape to jordanthe iranian less vulnerable to that because we've had a freak lull of ieas threat to israel; vice president nd peopleho whatever reaon al gore on "the future"; a lack feel there need to be changes of trust in the federal and reforms have had an average government and chinese hackers for convincing their elected hit the "new york times." but first, the other news of the day. representatives to bring about here's kwame holman. change. they can't do that as much now. >> holman: the u.s. senate voted today to suspend the nation's debt limit through mid-may. the congress is virtually incapable of passing any reforms that lets the government go on borrowing to pay its bills-- unless they first get permission beyond the current limit of $16.4 trillion. from the power spfl special republicans and democrats interests who are most affected by the proposal. supported the legislation, but >> brown: and right now we're in both sides also complained about kicking the issue down the road. the midst of a gun control >> i've d enough of it. debate in this country. do you think there's the the pelef inana ve h possibility of passing some sort ougof it. of comprehensivplanhe w the people across the country the president put it out? have had enough of washington >> i hope that this is an postponing real action on the most serious challenge facing exception and there are exceptions but the gag point if our country namely the out of

you will, the threshold beyond control spending into further which there is enough public deficit and debt. outrage to capture the attention of the congress that threshold >> obviously democrats would prefer a longer suspension of he has been raised to a debt ceiling which would provide ridiculously high level. additional economic security and i'm hoping that we will be able stability as we continue to find to get reform in the gun laws. ways to decrease the deficit. but here's the simple mechanism raising the possibility that the u.s. could default its at the heart of this. obligations every few months is the way our founders designed not an ideal way to run government b a shorterm american democracy, the role of solution is better than another imminent manufactured crisis. the elected representatives was to go to washington and immerse >> holman: the house already passed the bill. themselves in information and without it, the government would default on its obligations as learn more but always keep in early as mid-february. in economic news, americans' mind how is this going to affect personal income grew in my constituents. december, by the most in eight years.but first-time claims for to put it out way, how do i react if i vote this way or make jobless benefits were up last week. and on wall street today, the this speech. dow jones industrial average lost nearly 50 points to close now because representatives and at 13,860. senators spend five to six hours the nasdaq fell a fraction of a a day everyday begging for money point to close at 3,142. blinding snowfall and a slick from wealthy interests and wealthy indivial to build up a freeway triggered a mile-long series of crashes in detroit war chest so they can buy their today.

television commercials the next at least three people were killed and 20 more injured. day when they go to vote or make the pileups left a section of a speech they tell themselves "how is this going to affect my interstate 75 littered with fund raising?" wrecked cars and big-rig trucks. so their constituents take a the tangle involved some 30 backseat unless it is an vehicles, and halted traffic on exceptional situation where the the road for hours. public is passionately aroused. in egypt, representatives from the country's various factions made a rare show of unity today to denounce violence. >> brown: this money and the muslim brotherhood and influence question is one that has been hitting you with the secular parties met in cairo after rioting last week that past few weeks since you sold current t.v. to al jazeera. al jazeera owned by the killed nearly 60 people. government of qatar, the famly the meeting was led by egypt's top muslim cleric-- sheikh ahmed al-tayeb. there. it gets its wealth from natural >> the duty of the different gas and oil, fossil fuels. political movements is to commit to the use of pluralism and differences in peaceful ways and and what a lot of folks said to denounce the use of any sort (and you've been asked about in the last few days) of violence to achieve political ends. is the question of hypocrisy. the only way to solve any how can you telling all of us problems and differences is that it's important to think national dialogue without excluding any group. about cutting back on our energy >> holman: the week-long protests marked the second use how can you sell to a anniversary of the uprising that company that really is backed by toppled president hosni mubarak. that very thing. france today declared success in its three-week military >> i understand the charge.

i rejected and disagree with it operation to rout islamist but for one simple reaso in rebels in mali. malian forces liberated the doi dilence on what al towns of gao and timbuktu this week, and french troops now have jazeera really is, you will find very clearly that it has long occupied the airport at a third since established itself as a key city-- kidal. truly outstanding news gathering in paris today, the french defense minister said his network. let me give you one example. government is open to having their coverage of the climate u.n. peacekeepers take over, with french support. crisis is the highest quality those are some of the day's and most extensive of any major stories. now, back to jeff. >> brown: and we turn to two television network. stories about conflict in the middle east. by contrast, we just went as the battle in syria between president bashar al-assad's through here in the united forces and the free syrian army states a long presidential or f.s.a. rages on, thousas of campaign in a year that was the hottest american history with fugees flo into neighboring countries. uperstm sand and 60% of the jonathan miller of "independent television news" takes us to a country in drought and massive secret crossing point on the fires in the west and 110 border with jordan on the outskirts of the syrian city of da'-raa. billion dollars of climate disasters and not one journalist asked any of the candidates in any of the debates a single question about climate. >> brown: you wrote that and i've heard you say that in

interviews. but therefore what? because -- >> therefore we in the united states --. >> reporter: katiba jaber is a >> brown: but i can't get in the lonely place, exposed to desert winds that chill you to the heads of the moderators who did bone. the border guard is ready for what the night will bring. not ask -- esubly they had ( gunfire ) othethin, iortant things to the shooting started shortly after sunset. say. are you suggesting they didn't those are close. the syrians fire at the ask about climate change because jordanians every night but the jordanians don't fire back. they were influenced somehow by and bashar's forces shoot and money or by big corporations? shell the groups of refugees i mean, that's the "therefore hiding somewhere down there in the darkness. what"? >> i think that more diversity is a good thing and fresh points unexpectedly, a jordanian ambulance arrives. of view articulated by people who are committed to excellence on board, four old people who'd in journalism is a beneficial somehow become separated from their group. change in the american media landscape and a news they may have been the target of organization that regularly and the gunfire, but they made it. just. constant explorehis is issue they're exhausted. by contrast to the way it has there's a lot of shooting going on now. been ignored up until -- this old man and these few who've arrived here are a group superstorm sandy has begun to of i think about 45 among a much bring about some change but we larger group. have had a kind of odd silence you can here the shooting going on right now and there has been shellfire.

those down on the border must be about this issue and the united utterly terrified. states is the only nation that can lead the world toward a i went up to the watchtower. we weren't allowed to film the night vision screen, but i was solution on this issue. in any case, this organization allowed to report what i could see. has proven itself, it has a i've seen a group of about 80 refugees hidg in a ditch behind a berm. fantastic reputation. i' seean f.s.a. sitionnd i'm proud of what current t.v. their commander and his vehicle. waable to do. and i've seen three t-72 tanks we had an excellent lineup of of the syrian army and several missile batteries. programming but as an they know exactly where the independent in an age of refugees are and they've been firing at them. the refugees are now on the move conglomerates without deep pocket wes faced a point even and are heading this way. though we were profitable each year with we had to make a move. we join the reception party and head down the hill towards the this organization i think is a frontier. no lights. very good addition to the u.s. we're in direct line of fire. television dial. >> brown: you call yourself a recovering politician. i'm not going to ask you if they're talking to the f.s.a. you're planning to reenter commander. politics because you're no doubt a deep ditch demarcates the not going to tell me. but i wonder how you see border. yourself, your role, today. rebel soldiers are building a do you think you've been more mud bridge. we could turn our camera light effective out of politics or in? >> well, i don't have the on now; here we were hidden from illusion that there's any

the known syrian positions. position or role in the world out of the blackness, they with as much potential for bringing about change as that of emerged. they'd run the gauntlet of their president of the united states. oppressor; now they were but a but that was not to be and i few short steps from safety. found other ways to serve and i behind them, a building blazes; have found a lot of good ways to hit by shellfire. make a positive difference. this ditch was not the intended crossing point; pinned down by and i plan to continue doing that. >> brown:ll right, we're going regime gunfire, the f.s.a. had tocontinue thisiscssio changed the plan. online about climate change and other issues and i hope our viewers will join us then. for now, the book is "the future." al gore, thanks for talking with the final headcount for this group reached 149. us. >> thank you. they are now at the limit of endurance. they've been walking for hours, >> woodruff: next, a new survey from the pew research center braced for instant death. the soldiers guide them the long finds the nation increasingly way round and up the hill, out distrustful of the federal government. of sight of syrian forces. the findings released today show 3,000 syrians are entering about one-quarter of americans jordan like this every night now; 24 crossing points like trust government to do the right thng always or most of the this, along a 250-mile-long time, a whopping 73% don't.

frontier. 60,000 have crossed in january alone. and those surveyed blame members of congress. they've made it to katiba jaber; asked if the political system lights, gas fires, water, food can work, 56% responded that and shelter and a dawning realization that the terror is lawmakers are the problem and behind them. 32% disagreed. as they recovered, some sat to put this in historical perspective, we are joined by quietly; some wept; others andrew kohut of the pew research wanted to tell us what it was center. they'd run from. haj zedan said they'd undergone andy kohut, thank you for being a suffocating siege; no food, no with us again. >> happy to be with you. sleep; just fear. >> woodruff: this survey found not only do people not have a high regard for the federal fawzia said they had died many overnment, you found mority deaths to get here. think the federal government actually threatens their then we met marwa. personal rights. >> yeah. we have for the first time since we've been asking this question we have a majority, 53%, saying that they feel personally >> ( translated ): they went into the house of my husband's threatened, their rights are cousin and they burned him personally threatened by the alive. government. now, this is mostly being led by then they came to our house and set fire to it. a trend among republicans, my brother-in-law's clinic as well. especially conservative republicans among conservative republicans that percentage is they burned everything. there's nothing left. 76%. but it's a really very powerful only destruction.

i don't care. i just care about my children. attude. it has to do with worries on the thank god, we arrived safely. ght and the middle as well that the government is >> reporter: marwa's eldest son, mohammed, is ten years old. he talked matter-of-factly of encroaching on them. unspeakable depravity. gun control is part of their worries. i think you go back to obamacare >> ( translated ): a bomb flew into our neighbor's house and many people complaining the the house exploded. government is telling me i have our neighbor's head landed in our house. that to buy health insurance. they don't have the right to do we were very scared. this. this family painted an so this issue of the power of apocalyptic picture of their hometown, bosra al-sham-- an government, the role of government is certainly part of that. ancient city, now a scene of now, this is different than distrust in the government. slaughter with even children's it's certainly part of it. corpses in the streets. bu it's one particuar ement. >> and did i understand you to say it's independents as well as >> ( translated ): everyone was republicans? >> right. many of them are the today as we left bosra, they fired about 200 shells at us in just one hour. independents that lean everyone was dead. republicans. my husband's entire family was the democrats are less of this killed. view. but if we went back to the bush there are burials everyday in bosra al-sham. sometimes six or seven, sometimes as many as 12. years the democrats were more they are having to retrieve the inclined to say than the bodies from the streets with ropes. even now there are still bodies in the streets. republicans that the government i swear to god, when we left there were bodies littering the streets. personally threatened them.

now, they were worried about >> reporter: but this long night was far from over. at 4:00 a.m. another 358 syrians different things. they were worried about warrantless wiretaps and the entered jordan at this same loss of personal freedoms and a crossing. war against terrorism but 14 of them were shot and wounded as they did so. there's kind of a regime effect but the public both right and left really are quite worried in the small hours of the morning, marwa, mohammed and their family left with their that government is going to fellow-travelers to begin a new life as refugees in jordan's zaatrari camp, 18 miles, as the threaten what the values and crow flies, from the smoldering thing that they hold. ruins of their home. >> woodruff: how has this changed over time since you've been polling. >> woodruff: syria and iran both >> it's been an up-and-down vowed today to respond to israel's reported airstrike thing. yesterday inside syria. it relates to the things that are going on in the issues that meanwhile, iran declared to the international atomic energy are in play. agency that it pns to add new >> woodruff: and we're swing centrifus to speed up -- ihinkhis is therust in urananium enrichment. government which is the other that's stoked fears in the west question i wanted to ask you out and we're showing how that and israel that iran is closer to acquiring a nuclear weapon. started out in the 1960s at a tonight, margaret warner, on high level and then -- assignment in the middle east >> really what that chart shows reports on the growing debate is that distrust in government within israel about how much of a threat iran really is. has been endemic since the end of the 1960s of vietnam

post-watergate era. it's largely been most people >> reporter: prime minister benjamin netanyahu strode on saying they can't trust government. stage last week a chastened we've had a number of factors victor in parliamentary elections. our studies show that trust in his likud party bloc shaved by government falls when the economy is difficult or people voters asking for a focus on kitchen table issues. don't think that government's effective in dealing with it. netanyahu had this answer. th fall at times during unpop >> ( translated ): the first challenge is and will continue to be preventing iran from you you already a wars, vietnam, having nuclear weapons. iraq. now i think the fall, the tumble and the concern is gridlock. >> reporter: israelis should have expected nothing less, says people are very concerned that channel 10 defense correspondent government isn't getting alon ben-david. anywhere. two statistics stand out to me >> netanyahu sees removing the from this election. only 25% have a favorable view iranian threat as his lifetime mission, as a historical of congress. mission; as if history has put 90% of the penal who ran for him in this specific time and reelection got reelected and place to relieve the israeli that is the nature -- that's the people from the iranian nuclear threat. source of the frustration. >> reporter: but that sense of mission drove a very public spat >> woodruff: and picking up on with president obama last fall over when iran's program had to hat al gorewas saying, the way be stopped before it became the system now works with so impervious to attack. much money, with money having so netanyahu famously set the red- much of an influence it will be line for israel at the u.n. interesting to see whether -- t

what extent that affects people's views. >> the red line should be drawn >> well, i think that people right here. will -- are at the boiling point >> reporter: mr. obama has when it comes to -- we're not pledged to prevent a nuclear- armed iran, but hasn't laid out a red line of his own. getting what we want out of >> iran's leaders should understand that i do not have a washington. policy of containment. quote/unquote something's got to i have a policy to prevent iran give somewhere along the line. from obtaining a nuclear weapon. public patience is not endless. but the issue of gerrymandering, >> e cooperation between our the issue of money, there are defense tablishments is all these other facrshat extraordinary. >> reporter: the u.s. and israel complicate things. are working together with international sanctions against >> woodruff: andy kohut who has iran, close intelligence been watching these questions for years and will continue to cooperation and what's thought to be a covert campaign of keep an eye on them. sabotage. thank you. >> thank you, judy. >> woodruff: on our website you but tehran continues enriching can find a link to another uranium, which it insists is for recent pew study. peaceful power generation only. this one about the "sandwich generation": middle-aged americans who are helping and monday tehran said it had support both aging parents and their grown-up children. read that on the rundown. launched a monkey into space, showing off the kind of missile prowess that could be harnessed to deliver a nuclear warhead. >> the iranians are playing a cat and mouse game. >> reporter: israel's deputy >> brown: finally tonight, the foreign minister annyayalon hacking of the "new york times," says an's enrichment ce allegedly by the ines dictates israel's timeline. ray suarez has our look.

>> if they accumulate enough >> suarez: the "times" revealed uranium which is close to late yesterday that its computer system had been the subject of an extensive, four-month long weapons grade, enough uranium hacking attack. which enables them to detonate editors said hired security experts concluded chinese one nuclear device: to me is hackers cracked the passwords of clearly a redline. the iranian strategy is very more than 50 email accounts, sophisticated. including those of top reporters. and it is not to reach a bomb as the "times" reported the attacks coincided with an investigation fast as possible; it's reach to the bomb as safe as possible. it did that found relatives of wen jiabao, china's prime >> reporter: retired air force minister, had accumulated general amos yadlin, former several billion dollars through their business dealings. chief of military intelligence, for more on all is, i am joineby "new york tim" thinks iran is carefully laying the groundwork for a dash to a reporter, nicole perlroth, who nuclear weapon. reported the story in today's paper. >> they are moving forward at a and grady summers, vice pace that will not induce a reaction from the outside and president of mandiant, the cyber security company hired by the develop a very redundant program "times" to investigate the breach. overt, covert, under the envelope of legitimacy. nicole perlroth, let's start >> reporter: how serious a with you. how did the paper realize that threat is it to isrl? >> i consider it as the only it was under attack and could it existential threat to israel. immediately move to defend itself? >> we were actually -- this was a proactive effort by the "new if you combine a very logical york times." regime-- it's called in the open

we knew the story was coming out. we kn there had bee warnings about publicaton ofhe investigation into wen jiabao's relatives would quote/unquote have consequences. so our security team notified at&t which monitors our network full time to look out for unusual activity and we notified them a day before the story published and the day the story went online at&t got back to us and said that they had noticed that at least three of our computers were communicating with command-and-control servers that they knew had perpetrated attacks on other companies before and that they believed were being coordinated by the chinese military. >> suarez: from this monitor, were you able to tell, it was paper able to tell, what whoever was doing this was looking? were they just rooting around showing they could do it? what was the purpose? >> originally we didn't know what they were after. the timing of the attacks with the investigation of the story

gave us some sense but they were very active in the week after they published the story and specially on election night on november six which le some of my editors to suspect or fear they might do the worst which would take down our print or online publication systems. so we hired mandiant who came in and looked at our systems and it looks at if they spent two weeks once they initially got into our systems in september moving around our systems until they finally found the domain controllers that contains user names and passwords for every single "new york times" employee. they took those password, cracked th an g into 53 of our computers which it looks like they really used as a launching pad for the real target of their attacks which were the e-mail correspondents of david barbosa our shanghai bureau chief and jim yardley, our beijing bureau chief.

david is the one who wrote the investigation into mr. when's relatives. and based on what the attackers took, it looks as if they were looking for the sources of david barbos's investigaon. ats ironic about tha , as david has said publicly, the sources for that investigation were not some deep throat it was publicly available documents in china. so we could see the documents that these hackers were taking and they were not sensitive by any means. there was no deep throat. it was clear they were after his e-mail correspondence pretty early on in the attacks. >> suarez: grady summers, was this a sophisticated proficient attack? >> we find these are as proficient as they need to be in order to break into an organization. in the case we heard about from the "new york times" today i would say it was sixth or seventh on a scale of one to ten. we see these attackers become

sophisticated when they need to be and some cases simple spear fishing e-mail and some commodity will do the trick. >> suarez: how do you work it back so you know the origin or you believe the origin is in china? >> at mandiant we try to take a wholistic approach rather than looking at malware versus software we try to look at all the attacks and asto how we would tsz that back tchi we take this act seriously. it won't just toss out a country or actor. we got proprietary methods there's a corollary to the fiscal role to real life burglary. the detective will look for the m.o. and they look for the tools they use, the techniques they use, the time of day they break in and what approach they take to casing out a particular site and we do much the same thing in the cyber world. we look at hundreds of thousands of indicators, we group those to groups of threat actors a when we see the tools and techniques

used again we can pinpoint with pretty good accuracy. >> suarez: just in the last several hours it's become known that cnn international the external service of the cnn television network and the "wall street journal" were also victims of similar attacks and the united states government is now putting cyber you will haver inability on its intelligence estimates. apparently this is a big problem. >> it is a big problem and it's amazing how broad a problem it's beome. when we stardoin these investigations yearsago it wa primarily aerospace and defense sector. you could almost count on those sectors being targeted. today it would be easier to tell you which sectors aren't being targeted. anything from energy to oil and gas, clean technology, biofuels, law firms and, of course, even media and entertainment. so very broad based attacks. >> reporter: the "new york times" doesn't have the choice of leaving the biggest country on earth and the second biggest economy on earth, does it?

but this is a retaliatory attack and even at a time when your paper is expanding into china with a chinese language online edition. >> that's right, well the chinese language edition was blocked the day that that story on when you but a's relatives went live and it continues to be blocked in china and now we've seen we've been hacked as well. we would like to relaunch that site in china but it's a process. >> suarez: so for now full steam ahead in journalism as usual despite this kind of pushback om such a bigarket? >>that'sight. i don't think that this will deter us from doing the journalism we've always done and i credit tv times for letting the story be told. as grady can probably tell you there were hundreds of other organizations targeted by the same group that hit the "new york times", you just haven't heard about any of them.

so this is the first time we've been able to provide a rare glimpse into what one of these attacks look like. >> suarez: nicole perlroth, gdy summers, thank you bh. >> thank you. >> woodruff: again, the major developments of the day: the nominee for defense secretary, former senator chuck hagel, defended his record at his confirmation hearing. he said america must engage, not retreat, in the world. and the senate gave final approval to suspending the national debt ceiling into may. online we profile a social entrepreneur who works as matchmaker between international artisans and retailers. kwame holman explains. >> holman: in our agents for chnge riesmeethe woman in argof nt, an organization that helps talented, aspiring craftspeople build successful businesses and connect to consumers. that's on the rundown. should parents worry about kids consuming highly caffeinated energy drinks?

health correspondent betty ann bowser asks a psycho- pharmacologist. and on making sense, economist dean baker weighs in on the causes of rising economic inequality in the united states. all that and more is on our website newshour.pbs.org. jeff? >> brown: and that's the "newshour" for tonight. i'm jeffrey brown. >> brown: and i'm judy woodruff. we'll see you line and again here tomorrow evening with mark shields and david brooks among others. thank you and good night. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> and the william and flora hewlett foundation, working to solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... >> this program w made ssib by e cooration fo public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

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